Training New Generation Of Mental Health Workers
The Andrews Labor Government is marking the next stage in delivering the new Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022, which will change the way Victorians experience mental health care.
The Labor Government today released a tender for providers to develop a training course designed specifically for the Victorian mental health and wellbeing workforce, covering the foundations of the new Act which is scheduled to commence on 1 September 2023.
The training course will support workers to understand and apply the new requirements of the Act, to provide a better experience of care for consumers, carers, families and supporters.
Alongside these online training courses and resources, expert change leaders will be introduced into designated mental health services for ongoing education, training and promotion of the Act, to support this significant transformation of care.
The Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System told us that consumers found the system difficult to navigate, inaccessible and unwelcoming. The Mental Health and Wellbeing Act is a momentous step in reshaping the mental health system into a compassionate and responsive structure for all Victorians.
A foundation recommendation of the Royal Commission, the new Act will support a transformed mental health system that prioritises the rights, dignity and autonomy of consumers, families and supporters. Embedding lived experience in its scope, the Act also underpins the huge expansion of the mental health workforce.
The Government is investing $29.3 million over four years to support the implementation of the Act. Further work to reshape the system includes the new Independent Review of compulsory mental health treatment criteria, and the new Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission to oversee and monitor the mental health system.
Work is now underway on more than 90 per cent of the Royal Commission’s recommendations with $1.3 billion delivered in the Victorian Budget 2022/23, building on the record $3.8 billion investment in the Victorian Budget 2021/22 – the largest single investment in mental health in Victoria’s history.